A lot of people like to wait until the new year to get their ish together and work on health and fitness goals. There’s no better time like the present so why not get your butt in gear and start now so that by this time next month you’ll be ahead of the game.

You know that saying about summer bodies are made in the winter…well they weren’t lying! You may be thinking its entirely too cold to even thinking about wearing a bikini or that cute dress next summer but before you know it you’ll look up and be like I spent all winter living like a sloth and now I’m paying for it. We all know that eating right and exercising are what you are supposed to do, but sometimes you just get in a rut and then it’s “Oh I’ll get back on track tomorrow” or “I won’t eat that again”. Well the time has come and it means no more excuses. So if you’re like me, meaning human, then you can still get back on track!

Back in December, before I started the vegan challenge, I did a 21-day smoothie bowl challenge. It was the BEST way for me to transition into a vegan lifestyle. Not only are smoothie bowls delicious, but they can literally provide all of the nutrients you need in a day!

Smoothie bowls are literally what they sound like but even better. You combine your favorite fruits and veggies, whip them up and serve them in a bowl. Smoothie bowl are HUGE on Instagram and I love checking out how creative people are when they make them. My smoothie bowls typically look like something a 3-year-old would make, but still taste amazing!

Last month I had the chance to review the book Beautiful Smoothie Bowls by Carissa Bonham. She is the writer behind the popular blog, Creative Green Living, pulls together eighty delectable recipes for smoothies so good that your kids, friends, and veggie-hating spouse will be begging for more. There are also vegan, dairy-free, paleo and gluten-free recipes in the book as well. [Read more…]

This past January I decided to do a 30-Day Vegan challenge with my oldest daughter. Back in December one of my friends said she was looking for some people to be a support system for a 21-Day Vegan Challenge starting the following month. I’m always down for a challenge and decided that this sounded like something I’d love to do. During December to help make the transition a bit easier I did a 21-Day Smoothie Bowl Challenge. I seriously think that made the vegan challenge so much easier. The funny part of the challenge is the friend that mentioned it…never did start! LOL

Veganismis a type of vegetarian diet that excludes meat, eggs, dairy products and all other animal-derived ingredients. Many vegans also do not eat foods that are processed using animal products, such as refined white sugar and some wines.

Vegan refers to either a person who follows this way of eating or to the diet itself. That is, the word vegan can be an adjective used to describe a food item, as in, “This curry is vegan“, or, it can be used as a noun, as in, “Vegans like cookies, too.”

The first week or so I tried to stick pretty much to a meal plan that I found online. I figured it would make my life easier but it ended up just being a bunch of things I couldn’t eat. I’m allergic to avocado, melons, sometimes banana and a few other random azz things. I think avocados are in about 99% of the recipes that I came across…LOL! After a week of eating oatmeal and trying to make meals that turned into fails I decided to search out more things on Instagram. That became my savior!

So after a day of literally stalking folks on Instagram I found my tribe! I’d seen stuff by Peta for a vegan starter kit but just like the natural hair police some of that stuff was just too much for me. I’m all about eating better and living a healthier lifestyle but I’m not one for shaming those that eat food that contain animal products. I had joined a group on Facebook too hoping to just get recipes ideas and tips and some of those folks took veganism to the extreme. So I politely rolled up on out of there!

First off, can you believe the year is almost over?!?! I mean we were just saying Happy New Year like 10 minutes ago.

I don’t know about you but 2016 has been pretty much a shitty azz year. I don’t have much control over all of the nonsense going on but I do have control over my health! My oldest daughter has been obsessed with watching documentaries on Netflix and now she’s anti-Seaworld and anit-Circuses. SMH I swear she gets one thing stuck in her head and she goes full force with it. Now on the flip side, she’s decided that she wants to eat healthier and even mentioned becoming a vegetarian. One of my good friends mentioned they were doing a 21-day vegan challenge in January and wanted some other folks to join along. I figured this would be a great way for us to kick start off our healthy eating habits.

If you’re like 99% if the people I’ve told that we’re going to be doing a vegan challenge, then you might have some questions AKA think we are bat shit crazy! Here are my 5 tips on how to be successful and start a vegan challenge: [Read more…]